The present invention is related to a thermoformable nonwoven laminate of a nonwoven web layer and a barrier layer, which has cloth-like appearance and texture as well as high resiliency.
Absorbent personal-care articles such as sanitary napkins, disposable diapers, incontinent-care pads and the like are being used widely, and much effort has been made to improve efficiencies and functionalities of these articles. Thick, flat personal-care articles of the past design that do not fit the shape of the human body and do not conform to the movements of the user are largely replaced by resiliently conforming three-dimensional, body-shaped articles.
The outer-cover of these shaped personal-care articles needs to prevent collected liquid in the article from permeating to the outside, and in addition, it needs to be flexibly conformable to the movements of the user. Consequently, the covers are typically produced from a flexible and liquid impermeable material, e.g., a flexible thermoplastic film. In general, these flexible cover materials are formed into three-dimensional articles by gathering portions of the flexible material to form a basin-like or an hour glass-like shape that conforms to the body contour of the user. Suggestions have been made in the art that improved variants of the outer-cover can be produced from a laminate of a thin film and a thin nonwoven web to add desirable textural properties to the cover. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,701,177 discloses a feminine pad having a laminate outer-cover of a film and a nonwoven web. The shape of the gathered basin typically is retained by attaching elastic strips to hold the gathers in position and to provide a limited resiliency to the shaped article. However, the articles produced from the film and film laminate may not be highly suitable for certain applications where the articles need to provide a high degree of resiliency since the film or film laminate does not have high physical strength and the elastic strips only provide a limited resiliency and conformability to the movements of the user.
Alternatively, the outer-cover of shaped personal-care articles is produced from a flexible polyurethane or polyethylene foam sheet, which provides desirable resiliency and liquid-barrier properties. A foam sheet is molded or thermoformed into a self-supporting basin, eliminating the use of the elastic strips and providing improved resiliency and conformability. These thermoformed resilient articles tend to conform to the user's movements and retain their original shape after the articles are subjected to deforming pressures, improving efficacy and functionality of the articles. However, the articles thermoformed from these foam sheets are often characterized as having a rubbery or plastic-like texture.
There still is a need for thermoformable structures and thermoformed articles therefrom that exhibit a foam-like resiliency and a cloth-like texture. In addition, there is a need for a thermoforming process that thermoforms the thermoformable structures without appreciably diminishing the desirable resiliency and surface properties of the structures.